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One of the finest shows of that era, “Deadwood” (2004-2006), didn’t get as much attention or as many Emmy Awards as “The Sopranos” or “Mad Men” or “Breaking Bad,” but it is crammed with anti-heroes, and they aren’t all men. These are characters so richly drawn and executed, so distinctive, that they transcend figures portrayed by actors in a TV show.

I was reminded of them recently when I interviewed “Deadwood” star Molly Parker and decided to revisit the series.

As it happens, many of the characters in “Deadwood” were real people and Deadwood, S.D., is a real place. 

David Milch, the series creator, was a writer and producer known for the police dramas “Hill Street Blues” and “NYPD Blue.” He originally wanted to make a show about cops in Rome, but someone else beat him to that setting (HBO’s “Rome” aired between 2005 and 2007). So Milch traded police protagonists for the denizens of a gold-rush town, a lawless and violent place when it was first established as a camp in 1876.

In part, “Deadwood” is a series about two seemingly diametrically opposed men: Al Swearengen, the sometimes murderous proprietor of the Gem Saloon, a purveyor of gambling and prostitution, and Seth Bullock, the town’s law-abiding but violence-prone sheriff. 

But Swearengen and Bullock (both real people) are also the pillars around which a fascinating cast of characters coalesce, whether it’s Alma Garret (Parker), a drug-addicted New York society woman who reinvents herself in Deadwood after her husband is murdered over his gold claim; or Trixie (Paula Malcomson), a prostitute in Al’s employ who’s intelligent and compassionate, but also bitter and self-destructive.

As brilliantly played by classically trained English actor Ian McShane, Swearengen is a glorious contradiction of a man: a literal cutthroat, one who has no compunction about ordering the murder of a child to protect his business interests, but who is unshakably loyal to the people he employs, even the prostitutes, and who takes a genuine interest in the camp’s future.

(Al’s speeches, a highlight of the series, have been compared to profanity-laced Shakespearean soliloquies. Be warned that the dialogue is littered with words that begin with f, c and, occasionally, n.)

Bullock, played by Timothy Olyphant, is as much of an anti-hero as Swearengen: dedicated to law and order but with a hair-trigger temper that leads to him beating several men nearly to death in the series, Swearengen among them.

But the enjoyment of “Deadwood” — my all-time favourite TV drama — extends deep into the ensemble.

There are real-life figures like Wild Bill Hickok, played by Keith Carradine as a world-weary gambler burdened by his gunslinger reputation; Calamity Jane (Robin Weigert), a foul-mouthed alcoholic whose kind heart does battle with her self-loathing; and mayor and hotel owner E.B. Farnham (William Sanderson), a weaselly opportunist unable to earn the respect he craves.

But the fictional characters, even the most minor ones, also add to the show’s rich tapestry, one that is weighty and profane but frequently funny and heartwarming.

There are so many characters I haven’t mentioned — personalities like Cy Tolliver (Powers Boothe), Al’s rival in the business of gambling and prostitution; Cy’s madam and protégée, Joanie Stubbs (Kim Dickens); kind-hearted prospector Ellsworth (Jim Beaver); Mr. Wu (Keone Young), boss of the Chinese district; Bullock’s business partner, Sol Star (John Hawkes), and Hickok’s friend Charlie Utter (Dayton Callie) — but I can’t do justice to them all with mere words. 

In his companion book to the series, “Deadwood: Stories of the Black Hills,” Milch called Deadwood “a re-enactment of the founding of America, and a re-enactment, too, of the story of Original Sin.” 

To me, it’s also a story of community.

Despite the sins of the protagonists, the true villains are outsiders, such as rapacious gold prospector George Hearst (Gerald McRaney), another real person. 

When these outsiders threaten Deadwood, erstwhile enemies band together, people like Swearengen and Bullock and Alma, to protect the community they have forged, painfully so, through conflict and compromise.

Alas, the series was prevented from reaching a satisfactory conclusion when HBO cancelled it after three seasons. There was a lesser TV movie in 2019 that at least allowed some storylines to be concluded and fans to revisit the characters.

“Deadwood” used the limited canvas of a small town to explore the breadth of humanity: people are neither wholly good nor bad, but they are at their best when united for a common cause.

Bonus watch

The actors of “Deadwood” have stayed busy since the series ended its run. Here are some highlights from their continuing careers and where to stream them.

Olyphant went on to play another memorable lawman in the contemporary western “Justified” (Disney Plus), based on the Elmore Leonard books and created by É«É«À²nian Graham Yost.

Among Parker’s many TV gigs, the best known post-“Deadwood” is “House of Cards” (Netflix), in which she played a member of the U.S. Congress.

McShane played a deity in “American Gods” (Prime Video), the fantasy series based on the Neil Gaiman novel.

Titus Welliver, Silas Adams in “Deadwood,” got to lead his own show, the detective drama “Bosch” (Prime Video), and was a recurring character in biker series “Sons of Anarchy” (Disney Plus) alongside fellow “Deadwood” alum Dickens and Weigert.

Malcomson was a main character in the neo-noir drama “Ray Donovan” (Paramount Plus); Anna Gunn, a.k.a. Martha Bullock, went on to “Breaking Bad” (Netflix); Sean Bridgers, Johnny in “Deadwood,” had recurring roles in “Rectify” (AMC Plus) and “Get Shorty” (MGM); Beaver played a major character in “Supernatural” (Prime Video); Brad Dourif, a.k.a. Doc Cochran, gave voice to “°ä³ó³Ü³¦°ì²â”Ìý(StackTV); and Hawkes was recently seen in the Emmy-winning “True Detective: Night Country” (Crave).

And if you’re looking for another series that features gold prospecting as a backdrop, try “The Luminaries” (Prime Video).

Set during the 1866 gold rush in New Zealand, and based on the Booker Prize-winning novel by Canadian-born Eleanor Catton, the six-episode miniseries is a tale of murder, greed, love and innocence lost with an international cast and a supernatural twist.

It stars Irish actor Eve Hewson, French actor Eva Green, British actor Himesh Patel, New Zealander Marton Czokas and Australian Ewen Leslie.